After running out of GS Custom FN 380 grainers to stuff in the Rigby case with 105 grains of H4831, I decided to try the 400 grain Swift with this same charge.

The Swift would not chamber when seated at the cannelure for crimping due to the tight throat on the Rigby. So I just seated them deeper with no crimp, but I had to go all the way down to 3.59" COL to chamber them, so I only loaded two of them to get an idea of velocity when doing the final zeroing of the FN bullet. I also decided to push the FN in a little deeper and crimp it between the second and third driving bands to see what the accuracy would be like crimped.

The results were agreeable:
FN crimped COL = 3.67" group = 0.541"
FN no crimp COL = 3.71" group = 0.147"

Velocity crimped: 2489, 2521, 2492 av = 2501 fps
Velocity uncrimped: 2507, 2512, 2507 av = 2509 fps

Do you reckon some energy is used up and nonuniformity introduced in breaking loose the crimp on firing? Either load is good enough for me.

The two Swift bullets were then fired: velocities for the 400 grainers were 2484 fps and 2480 fps. I wished then that I had loaded more of this compressed load of H4831! The two bullets went into the same hole at 100 yards.

This two-shot "group" measured 0.008" center-to-center It was simply a single slightly out of round hole.

I have a talented factory Rifle apparently.
The standard Rigby throat has no freebore I think. It is just a leade of gradual taper from case mouth in the chamber down to the bore over a run of only about 0.3" or so.
Throat equals freebore plus leade, and the Rigby has no freebore. Mr. Ruger was having a good day when he cut the chamber on Eleanor Rigby, obviously!

------------------
Good huntin' and shootin',
RAB

Ron,

Dang!!! What those boys that shoot the pea shooters are missing. And what I'm missing by not having a big bore at the moment

On the up side, I have a 480 ruger waiting for me, and have both a 390 gr LFN mold, and just started casting with my buddies 310 gr LFN. Too bad they are plainbased, or I'd have to consider a 470 NE Ruger #1, once one has some good molds, seems like one should have a few guns to shoot the bullets out of.

Daktari,

It sounds like you have a definite keeper there!

Saeed, in his FAQs, has some info on crimping. It seems to help rather that hurt accuracy in his tests. I have never seen it hurt accuracy, or velocity deviation.

Did you get any setback on the uncrimped cases under recoil?

Time is short!

I'll be away a few days, so I'll wish you luck now. Slay 'em!

Don

Paul H,
Great Northern Guns, in Anchorage, Alaska, (the same place we toured in December 2000) is where I found Eleanor Rigby in 1998. She was the old model with the fat barrel, collecting dust, while the new girls with the skinny barrels were being carried off in the arms of lustful gun nuts. I saw her potential, and I am glad I packed the old girl home to Kentucky. Besides, she had been marked down, a rare find at Great Northern Guns.

She weighs 10.75 lbs. naked and 12.25 lbs. clothed in Ruger rings and Leupold glass. She does shoot tight groups though.

------------------
Good huntin' and shootin',
RAB

Don G,
I didn't have any setback of the bullets in the magazine, but since crimping them shorter didn't make a whole lot of difference, I went ahead and crimped them for peace of mind. My limited number of shots crimped or not crimped would not be a statistically significant test of anything. I guess the bigger factor is the change in COL.

For hunting I will crimp and go shorter COL.

For Big Bore Bench Rest shooting at the Mitch Carter School of Big Bore Zen, I would want to go with the 0.147" load.

I attribute my recently reduced group sizes to several factors, including the tutelage of Professor Carter. I had three lessons on the T.rex!

------------------
Good huntin' and shootin',
RAB

R. A. Berry

I have the new model Ruger and I have a friend that has an old one like yours, in 416 Rigby. Both shoot like you describe. My friend is loading 118 grs of Rel 22 with a 350gr Barnes bullet. He had no loading data at the time and used Weatherby load data and worked up to that load. I am using 108gr Rel 22 with a 350 gr Barnes bullet. My son shot a 3 shot group, 1 (near perfect .416) hole.

I had sent my scope back to Leupold and got the German type cross hairs installed and was resighting mine in, just the other day, with some new reloads. Hornady 400 gr softs and solids. I started resighting with the 400gr Trophy Bonded bearclaws I had left. I finally got it back to zero and they started cutting a ragged 1 hole group. I then tried my new handloads. Two shots (soft and solid) in the same hole!!
(about 3/4" all together)

This is just an amazing rifle. I have never owned a rifle so accurate. This rifle has never produced a flyer. The irons are dead on with the 400 grainers. The action was a little rough when I got it but I polished the ramp and wore out 4, 416 bullets, until it loaded smooth. I had bought a 470NE for my next trip over but I couldn't stand to leave the 416 Ruger behind. The 470NE is for sale.

Good shooting,
Terry

Terry,
Good to hear from you of another accurate Ruger Rigby. And you have the more svelte model that is a tight grouper too!

Could you confirm the weight of the newer model and it's muzzle diameter, from your specimen?

Is the weight (without rings and scope and unloaded) in the 9.25 to 9.75 (lbs.) range? I know the wood can make them vary a little. Mine is 10.75 lbs.

Is the muzzle diameter (just beyond the front sight band) 0.720"? Mine is 0.810".

Thanks.

------------------
Good huntin' and shootin',
RAB

R.A.
Mine measures 7.50 at the tip of the muzzle ahead of the band. I have not weighed this rifle but I think you are in the ball park. I will try to get to some scales with it. I am curious about some of my other rifles also. My friend with the older rifle like yours had his for sale for awhile. He was wanting one of the lighter models but he has been on several safaris with his and it shoots so good that he gave that idea up and put it back in the gun safe. He was the one that suggested I buy the Ruger. He swears by the Barnes 350's and I did shoot them at the range, but on my hunt I used the 400 gr Trophy Bonded solids. I like using the 400 gr's because my iron sights are on with these.
A couple of years ago, at the Reno safari convention, Ruger came out with their "new" big bore rifle. This rifle had no quarter rib and a gold Ruger emblem on the floor plate. I thought they might discontinue the quarter rib rifles and I almost bought a 375HH in the quarter rib model. I think they gave that idea up because at the last convention they were displaying their original rifle. I still have the catalogue on that rifle though. They also offered a 338 Ultra Mag in the same (similar but with no sights) rifle. I'm not sure if they ever produced these but if so they may be a good collector rife. I know there are some like this because I saw them. It would have been a bad mistake for them to replace their current rifle with that model though.
Our local gunshop here has sold quite a few Rugers and with no complaints. I put a 1" decelerator pad just on the end of the wood which lengthened mine a bit and seems to fit better. I can't say if it did anything for the recoil. The thing just kicks.
Anyway sounds like you have a great shooter. Those don't come around too often.
Regards,
Terry

An option that I use most of the time as I don't like to crimp:

I turn the resizer button down four thousands and use a powder that fills the case...never have any problems...

Set back occurrs mostly from reloading rounds on top of a round and the setback occurs over a large number of shots...just be alert to that and it won't happen.

------------------
Ray Atkinson

ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com